Posts by lizhaywood
Blast from the past: 1991 grad collection
While digging around in the shed in last month’s cleanup, I found a box containing some of the pieces from my graduation collection from fashion college. I was 18-nearly-19 when I graduated with an “Advanced Certificate in Pattern Technology” and my three-piece collection was called Cycle into Streetwear. The header picture in this blog post…
Read MoreOkay, final words on the zero waste undies
Thank you everyone who’s followed and participated in these blog posts on Zero Waste Wardrobe’s free underpants pattern. There were lots of good ideas on leg bands, gussets and bottom cover. The first post on these is here and the second is here. Last week I had the situation of a non-zero waste gusset in…
Read MoreRevisiting the zero waste underpants
I’ve been thinking about the zero waste underpants I made last week from Zero Waste Wardrobe’s free pattern. Since then, some others have tried the pattern. Donna-in-the-comments made some in swimwear fabric. She left the legs unhemmed and cut a conventional gusset from a different fabric. @duckgoesoink made a beautiful red pair with lace trim.…
Read MoreZero Waste Underpants
Yep, on the weekend I made a pair of zero waste underpants. The pattern is by Zero Waste Wardrobe; it’s a free pattern that’s part of a personal design project by clothing and costume designer Saara Jolkkonen. The mission of the project is to provide a free (creative commons licensed) collection of zero waste patterns…
Read MoreScrapbag confessions
This was going to be a post about my home sewing scrap bag, and the result of doing zero waste sewing, but it turned out I couldn’t really measure the effect because I didn’t start with a clean slate. To explain: at the beginning of 2020, after dallying with zero waste for several years, I…
Read MoreFree pattern: zero waste ruffle tank
It’s been nearly a year since this blog offered a free pattern, so ladies and gentlemen, I give you the zero waste ruffle tank. The ruffle tank is a summer top in 15 sizes, and very simple to make. UPDATE: I’ve since made this top as a dress here. It suits lightweight fabrics such as…
Read MoreZero waste with hand woven fabric
Last year I had a very special sewing experience: I got to sew hand woven fabric for the first time. The fabric was woven by Tracy of Knit-Spin-Weave, our local yarn shop. You may remember she made a zero waste bolero in hand woven fabric for the Zero Waste Sewing blog tour. I dropped in…
Read MoreI’m 5, I’m 5, I’m a big girl now I’m 5!
Last week the 5th birthday of the Craft of Clothes blog slipped by (with title apologies to Barbara Streisand). It’s been 5 years, 240 posts, over 1000 comments, 17 free patterns and 35 reviews. I wondered when I started if I’d be stuck for things to write about, but that never happened. I’ve written every…
Read MoreMaking Holly McQuillan’s zero waste spiral trousers
In the world of zero waste pattern cutting, Holly McQuillan’s spiral trousers are considered a must-do/bucket list pattern. These unusual trousers have been on my mind for some time, but I didn’t feel brave enough to try them until I saw Sue Stoney’s blog post on them and saw Holly demonstrate how they’re constructed at…
Read MoreNew pattern: The Compact Backpack (zero waste)
Hi Everyone, I have a new zero waste pattern: The Compact Backpack. It’s in my little Etsy shop now; please enjoy 25% off during February. The Compact Backpack is compact in two ways: Firstly, the pattern pieces fit exactly into a 105cm/41⅜” x 64cm/25¼” rectangle with zero waste. And, if you make the backpack in…
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